Randy Messenger's agent, Matt Sosnick, spoke to Sankei Sports and said, "He is thinking about returning to Hanshin. We feel we can reach an agreement with Hanshin, and right now we are waiting to hear back from them. But we are also thinking about waiting to see what kind of offers we get from MLB teams. The biggest thing for Randy is, which teams treats him right."

Sosnick also said, "He feels a strong bond with the team and the Hanshin fans. That is why we would like to see Randy play for Hanshin for a long time."

Note: the quotes were Japanese translated from English, which I translated back to English, so there is bound to be some oddities or missing bits.

According to Nikkan Sports, the Tigers may have to go with Mauro Gomez at first since he has not had a lot of time at third. That could mean competing against Takahiro Arai for the everyday job. The loser might end up having to move to third, although Arai physically may not be able to (he has had problems with his throwing shoulder).

A team official told reporters on Wednesday that the Tigers were close to finalizing a deal for Gomez and that the only thing left was for the team to work out the final remaining details with the Washington Nationals.